Local film company to debut first feature

Local production company Down Poor Pictures is premiering its first independent feature film, Ringside Rosary. Filmed mostly in Asheville, with a local cast and crew, the drama tells the story of a boxer trying to shed his criminal past.

“It’s a little bit Greek tragedy and little bit grindhouse,” says director Jack Eagen. “It’s a film that came about because we were trying to do something original.”

The movie follows orphaned, underground boxer Tommy (Tom Stadnick) as he tries to break free from his violent past after becoming a father to a deaf son (Jakob English). As Tommy and his wife, Lizzy (Mara Breindel), try to abandon their criminal lives, Lizzy’s struggles with addiction and debt threaten to drag them back down. [See review by Ken Hanke in Special Screenings.]

Eagen says it took four years to get the film from idea to completed product. In total, the production cost about $8,000, and Eagen credits the community with helping out. He says College Street’s Mediterranean Restaurant allowed him to film in their space when they were closed, and ShaoLin Kung Fu opened its studio to let cast members practice fight sequences and falls.

The 31-year-old director says he thinks Asheville is a good environment for independent filmmaking. “We’ve been very successful here so far. We’ve got a beautiful set of locations to pick from.”

Eagen says his company has already completed a second feature-length film, which is now in post-production.

Ringside Rosary’s premiere will include two screenings, with refreshments, a Q&A with Eagen and an afterparty at Adam Dalton Distillery.